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PHOENIX (FOX 10) - The East Valley Maricopa Care and Control Facility has been placed under quarantine. It comes after an increase within the community of illnesses like parvo and distemper.
The quarantine will last for the next two weeks. Three dogs at the facility have tested positive for distemper and several other dogs are showing signs of upper respiratory infection. This is now putting a lot of stress on the West facility because every dog being brought in will have to come to this facility only.
Officials with the Maricopa County Animal Care and Control are taking precautions to hopefully prevent the spread of illnesses like parvo and distemper.
"For the next two weeks, no dogs will be coming in and no dogs will be going out of the East shelter facility," said Jose Santiago with Maricopa County Animal Care and Control. "We're trying to revaccinate all of the dogs that are in that facility. We're monitoring the ones that are showing signs of the upper respiratory infection and [we're] starting to medicate them with antibiotics.
Three dogs have tested positive for distemper at the East facility. Veterinarians are seeing an increase here and in the community.
"The classic early signs of distemper are [mucasy] green ocular discharge or nasal discharge," said Nancy Mayer, chief of shelter medicine at the facility. "Lethargy or listlessness, dogs not wanting to eat, coughing. Primarily, respiratory signs are the first signs you see with distemper."
Although the West shelter isn't under quarantine, there's still precautions being taken.
"We're not allowing the general public to come in with their own pets to do meet and greets, [it's] just for [the safety of their own pets] and for the safety of the animals we have here as well," Santiago said. "We're limiting the dog to dog interaction [and] we're making sure people are washing their hands. If you pet one dog in one kennel, sanitize your hands before going on to the next."
Because the shelter is in a pretty desperate situation, they're offering discounted adoption rates. For dogs 20 pounds or more, it's just $21. Dogs 19 pounds and less are just $50 dollars. Puppies and shelter heroes are normal price.